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About my plants Under reconstruction About Special Features
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Growing up in a small town that was more rural in nature than urban I
was fortunate to be in the position of having just within a short walk
different universes of the natural world in which a wealth of plant
life existed. As a child I did not really develop an awareness of
plants as being unique and interesting life forms to appreciate. This
awareness came later when I enterred high school and discovered the
world of vegetable gardening. My real interest became focused when, while exploring the Mussel Rock area at the south end of the coastal dunes to the west of Guadalupe, California, I was shocked by the damage being done to the narrow strip of dune area behind the first line of ocean facing dunes. Here was a very unique flora of low lying plants sheltered in a dell protected from the westerly winds. This haven had become the retreat of campers who had ventured into the area in their dune buggys looking for the momentary thrills of challenging the high dunes of the immediate area. I was disheartened by all the litter that my fellow species had left, as well as the damage to patches of plants. This was probably around 1960. As I began to look more closely at the plants of this unique area I made numerous collections of living plants and seeds in the hopes of learning how to grow them. Here were found Abronia, Monardella, Dudleya, and Convolvulus. While my favorite plant of this area is the mint, Monardella, I took pride in being able to germinate seed of Convolvulus cyclostegius. This was my first real endeavor to grow native plants.
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